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Zip it up!  Not the fly on your knickers. (then again, if your fly is down please do zip it up)
Zip it, your mouth that is!  Our mouths enjoy writing checks our bodies can’t cash and it’s going to catch up with us in a hurry, if it already hasn’t.
Are you getting a bit agitated that someone would tell you to close your mouth and listen?  Don’t worry, I struggle with this as well, along with the large majority of leaders in business, politics, sports…you name it.
I’m writing this with a bit of tongue-in-cheek on purpose, but I promise my brazen efforts are only to share with you a great truth about leadership.  That truth is the art of listening.  As in, not speaking and allowing others to talk, a foreign concept for many of us.
Why is listening an important habit to develop to be a good leader?  Those who possess the ability to listen earnestly experience deeper relationships, advanced awareness of how they show up and how others are impacted by them (EQ), are genuine in their care for others and are touted as being “leaders people would run through a wall for”.  To become an exceptional leader, you must develop your ability to listen. 
You may be thinking, “Well, that’s not very profound.  I listen all the time.”  But, do you really listen?
Let’s see how good of a listener you are.  If you’ve done one of the following in the last week you’ll want to continue reading this article:

1. Interrupted someone while they were talking
2. Judged someone or jumped to a conclusion before they finished speaking
3. Continued typing on your computer or texting on your phone while someone was talking
4. Responded to someone’s statement or question with:
   1. Defensiveness
   2. A question or statement unrelated to the persons first comment
   3. Haste
   4. Blame
5. During a conversation you responded with interjections such as ‘yah’, ‘Hmmmm’ or ‘uh-huh’ (hate when I do this)
6. Tapped your fingers or fidgeted frequently during a conversation

The list goes on, and on, however these six items seem to be the biggest perpetrators of what we see from people who aren’t engaged and listening.
Why is it we don’t listen?  Short answer – our egos get in the way of allowing someone else the stage to talk. 
The long answer – Perhaps you’re the exception as your listening skills are top notch.  For everyone else out there, which I’ll gladly throw myself into this boat, as leaders we struggle with listening.  We tell ourselves that others are wrong; only we know the truth; “I don’t have time for this”; I can multi-task while we’re talking; my point makes more sense; they’re idiots; they must not see the big picture (love that one); they have to hear my side before we can move on, etc.  With so much going on in the world today it’s easy to fall into the trap that you don’t have time to have a conversation, especially if that conversation isn’t of grave importance.
Leaders – read closely here.  The success of your job depends on your ability to listen.  Forbes writer Glenn Llopis says that when “leaders judge, they expose their immaturity and inability to embrace differences.”  Did you know that your act of not listening actually sent such a strong communication to the person on the other end?  Imagine how it made them feel!
How can we fix this?
Short answer – zip it (our mouths that is) and focus on the person in front of you.
Long answer – put away your phone, your work at hand, close your computer screen or turn it off, close your door for that matter and stop mulling over that rerun episode of Keeping Up With the Kardashians you watched for the sixth time last night.  Do whatever you need to in order to give the person on the other side of the table your complete and undivided attention.
WHY should we focus on being better listeners?
If you haven’t come to the conclusion by now, we may need to get some backup in here asap.  Let me get to the point then.  Your job and career as a leader depends on it.
People follow and support leaders who live a servants’ mentality which means when their people have an idea, a question, a problem, or a wild haired suggestion, they listen as if listening is going out of style.  Being a servant doesn’t mean a leader is weak, it means their people and company come first, before themselves.  Conversation is the gateway to a persons’ mind, body and soul.  Its best we listen or we’ll run the chance of missing out on some truly incredible moments.